Side bearing for railroad cars



July l9, 1932:. G. s. MIDDLEHURST SIDE BEARING FOR RAILROAD CARS Filed Nov. 4, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 6002 90 JLM July 19, 1932. e. s. MIDDLEHURST SIDE BEARING FOR RAILROAD CARS 2 Sheets-Shet 2 Filed Nov. 4, 1929 (3 0796 J.MzZWekuns7/ ATTORNEY Patented July 19, 1932 PATENT OFFICE GEORGE S. MIDDLEHURST, OF NAMPAQIDAHO SIDE BEARING FOR RAILROAD CARS Application filed November 4, 1929. Serial No. 404,721.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in bearing construction and principally in the side bearings employed upon railway rolling stock.

An object of the invention embodies a bearing of this character having a roller engageable with and for rockinq movement against the bolster of a car body as same is drawn about turns and bends along the line.

Another object of the invention contemplates the provision and arrangement of a pin or axle for the roller having sliding connection within the roller housing to guide said roller when the latter is shifted laterally 16 from its normal position.

A further object, of the invention consists of stops for the roller to limit the rocking motion of the roller and to prevent rotation thereof andto facilitate retracting or recentering of the rollers.

More specifically stated the roller is so shaped that the car bolster will at all times be engaged even while turning or misaligned with the trucks whereby tilting movement and swaying of the car body will be prevented.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention further consists of the following novel features and details of construction, to be hereinafter more fully described,

" illustrated in the accompa. ying drawings and pointed out in the appended claim.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the inven- 5 tion,

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line 33 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary end elevation of the invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail where in like characters of reference denote corresponding parts, the reference character 10 indicates a casing or box having lateral flange portions 11 secured to the adjacent surface of a truck beam, not shown.

A cradle of substantial box like formation and as indicated at 12 is positioned within the enclosure defined by the casing in the manner shown in Figure 3 of the drawings.

A rim or flange, such as indicated at 13, carried by and inwardly projecting from the upper marginal edge of the casing 10 restricts upward movement of the cradle 12 therethrough whereby the latter must of necessity enter the casing from the lower end thereof.

A roller member 14 of cross section elliptical shape having an axle 15 projecting for appreciable distances outwardly and beyond the ends thereof is received within slots or guide passages 16 longitudinally disposed within the opposite side walls of the cradle 12. The lower edges of the slots or passageways 16 are upwardly and outwardly inclined from the intermediate portions thereof; the purposes and. advantages of such con struction will be presently apparent.

Lugs 17 carried by and horizontally disposed upon the upper surface of the bottom wall for the cradle 12 and in spaced parallelism thereon, are rounded, as at 18, upon the upper exposed portions thereof and which are designed for selective accommodation within pockets or slots 19 in the roller 14: and upon opposite sides of the vertical center thereof. That portion of the roller 14 between the stops or lugs 18 normally reposes upon the upper side of the bottom wall of the cradle, that is, when the car is traveling upon a straight stretch of track.

When turns or bends are encountered in the tracks, the projecting extremities of the axle 15 will travel upwardly upon one of the intersecting obliquely inclined portions of the adjacent guide slot whereby the rocker or roller 1 1 will be prevented from coming out of the cradle. Such action will also materially aid in the rocking of the roller to occupy either of the dotted line positions shown in Figure 3 of the drawings to follow the bolster of the car and to prevent tilting or swaying of the car body incident to the absence of any form of support therefor. As the car is being brought back on to a straight stretch of track, the rocking motion will retract the roller and the downwardly inclined edge of the guide slots or passageways for the projecting ends of the axle will facilitate disposition of the aforementioned bottom portion of the roller between the lugs 18 and the lugs and an axle passing through the the upper rounded portion of the elliptical roller and having its ends received 1n the form of roller will be disposed centrally of openings of the cradle. the immediate bolster. In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

5 In side bearings of this character, when it GEORGE S. MIDDLEHURST. 70

is desired to take up for lost motion between a bolster and roller, it is necessary to remove the bolts securing the casing to the truck beam and to overcome this laborious task it is my intention to so arrange the cars 75 ing that shims or other spacing elements may be interposed between the truck beam and the adjacent portion of the cradle whereby any space or play existing between the adjacent surfa-cesof a bolster and roller there- I 89 for will betaken up, p

' In carrying out this phase ofthe invention, I provide an entrance opening or slot in one endv wall of the casing 10 through which the shims or spacing elements, indi- 93 catedasat 21, may be inserted. A closure plate 22 extended over the slot or opening 20 is retained against displacement through the employment of a cross pin 23 carried 25 within registering openings in spaced par- 93 allel apertured ears 24 carried by the casing and extended through the closure plate.

With reference to Figures 1 and 3 of the drawings, it is apparent that'the under side of the bottom wall for the cradle 12 is spaced adjacent its ends progressively from a point near the center thereof from the adjacent shim or spacing element 21 wherebyrocking movement of the cradle upon the shims will 7 o relieve binding action between the roller and bolster whereby the roller will freely follow the bolster while making turns in either direction.

The invention is susceptible of various 49 changes in its form, proportions and minor i details of construction, and the right is herein reserved to make-such changes as properly fall within the scope of the appended claim.

Having described the invention, what is claimed is 119 A side bearing comprising an open center casing provided at its upper edge with inwardly disposed flanges, a shim plate forming the bottom of the casing, a'cradlehaving 50 a bottom wall resting upon the shim plate,

' said bottom wall being thickest transversely at a point midway between its ends and gradually diminishing in transverse thickness toward its opposite ends whereby the 59 bottom wall of the cradle tapers in transverse thickness from its transverse median dimension to its ends, said cradle having upper edges disposed under the flanges of the casing and spaced therefrom, the side walls 9 of the cradle being provided with substantially triangular shaped openings, the cradle being provided upon its bottom wall withspacedrlugs located between the ends of the tapered portions of the said wall, a roller 'member'having pockets adaptedto receive 

